It’s decision time for Don Mattingly when Matt Kemp returns to Dodgers lineup

While Matt Kemp took batting practice and ran in the outfield Sunday afternoon, the wheels were spinning in the head of Dodgers manager Don Mattingly.

Kemp’s sprained left ankle gets a little better every day, and with every accelerated burst and decisive cut he pushes one step closer to returning to the Dodgers outfield.

And that moves Mattingly one day closer to dealing with the biggest blessing/dilemma of his young managing career.

But more on that in a bit.

Kemp happily reported no pain in the ankle after completing his workout Sunday. And while he still can’t pinpoint a definitive target for when he’ll play in an actual game, it could be just a matter of days.

“We’ll see,” Kemp said. “When it’s time it’s time.”

Point is it’s coming.

And Mattingly is bracing for the ramifications.

One day soon the Dodgers skipper will reach for a pen to write out his lineup only to find he’s holding a double-edged sword.

And his ability to yield it boldly but carefully could determine the Dodgers’ fate.

When Kemp returns the Dodgers’ talented outfield will morph into a four-headed monster – one that can potentially destroy the Dodgers from within as easily as it might demolish the rest of baseball.

How does Mattingly keep four outfielders happy when he can play only three at a time?

How will Andre Ethier accept sitting against right-handers, whom he’s OPSing against at an .816 clip this year?

What does Kemp say if he’s continually being shuffled in and out of the starting lineup?

Or Carl Crawford for that matter – one of the unsung heroes this year for the Dodgers?

And how does Yasiel Puig, who created this wonderful mess by playing out of his mind since being called up in early June to replace the injured Kemp, react to not playing every day?

Finally, how does Mattingly handle this potentially explosive situation?

On one hand he’ll soon have an embarrassment of riches at his disposal.

On the other, he’ll have an angry player sitting on his bench every single day.

Which is why Mattingly made the preemptive move recently to sit everyone down and talk about things openly and honestly.

A meeting in which he told them he not only expects an angry response when he tells someone they aren’t playing, he respects it.

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“I told them; I don’t expect them all to be happy,” Mattingly said. “If you’re not in the lineup and you’re a guy that wants to play every day you’re not going to be happy.”

But come game time, deal with it accordingly.

“This is the situation,” Mattingly explained. “I don’t know what to tell you.”

That’s when Mattingly and the Dodgers will find out who’s really all in – or not.

And all it takes is one unhappy player – if not four – to tear down everything the Dodgers have built the last two months.

Mattingly thinks – or hopes – the potential of winning a World Series will override any self-interested tendencies.

“Nobody wants to be (the guy) that screws something up,” Mattingly said.

Maybe.

But when it comes to proud athletes, no one wants to take a backseat either.

Can you imagine Puig sitting two days in a row?

Or Kemp or Ethier?

“There’s going to be tough decisions,” Mattingly admitted.

And while everyone’s saying all the right things now, what will they be saying in late September when they’re sitting on the bench in a key game?

Let alone the National League playoffs and hopefully beyond?

Mattingly is already formulating a game plan, and it’s a sound one. The focus will be preserving Crawford for the long haul, easing Kemp back into the mix and manipulating the most advantageous matchups.

But on some level this will come down to performance.

“If you’re getting two or three hits a day you’re usually playing,” Mattingly said. “It’s a little bit of a competition in a sense.”

And while Crawford will agree to a maintenance day off each week and Kemp understands he’ll be handled accordingly – at least early into his return – and Ethier will accept sitting against left-handers, the moment Mattingly deviates from normal business to accommodate a hotter bat he might have a volatile situation on his hands.

“Somebody that I’m going to have to deal with.” Mattingly conceded.

It’s a tough situation.

One Mattingly is already bracing for.

His ability to handle it correctly – and Kemp, Ethier, Crawford and Puig’s willingness to respect his decisions – might decide the Dodgers’ fate.